Extreme weather events: An insurer’s perspective

Santam, South Africa’s largest general insurer has been inundated with media enquiries following this week’s catastrophic weather conditions in large parts of the country, including Gauteng, Kwazulu-Natal and Mpumalanga.

Most of the enquiries have focused on how we are dealing with the catastrophes and the extent of claims received from our clients. Santam’s focus over the past few days has been on deploying our emergency management plan, which entails dispatching special claims teams to affected areas to work directly with intermediaries and clients.

“The severity and geographical spread of these events has placed our claims team under significant pressure. In situations like these, our priority is always to assist with emergencies, especially in cases where individuals have lost nearly everything as a result of the extreme weather events,” says Ebrahim Asmal, Santam’s Executive Head of Claims and Group Sourcing.

“In such situations, it usually takes a number of days to get a full picture of the damage, the cost and the extent of the claims received,” he added. “We will be in a better position to provide a view on the impact of these extreme weather conditions in the next 48 hours.”